Kosmos nears end of Tortue drilling campaign offshore Mauritania

In its 4Q 2015 and FY 2015 results statement, the company says it has nearly completed appraisal drilling on the Tortue West structure. The Atwood Achiever is currently drilling Ahmeyim-2, the third and anticipated final well, which is designed to test the downdip extent of the field.

In December 2015, Kosmos announced the Guembeul-1 well confirmed a significant gas discovery that extended into both Senegal and Mauritania. Guembeul-1 is 5 km (3 mi) south of the basin Tortue-1 in 2,700 m (8,858 ft) of water. As a result, the company raised its Pmean gross resource estimate for the Tortue West structure to 11 tcf from 8 tcf.

The company plans a 2016 capex budget of $650 million, a nearly 20% reduction from 2015. About $200 million is expected to be spent in Ghana, primarily related to the completion of the Tullow Oil-operated TEN project. It expects to spend approximately $250 million in Mauritania and Senegal related to the appraisal of the Ahmeyim discovery, the drilling of one oil test in Senegal, and the acquisition of additional seismic. No additional drilling is planned.

[Native Advertisement]

Planned exploration expenditures total approximately $200 million, including capital related to seismic acquisition, new ventures, and rig costs for the Atwood Achiever.